Eumenes mediterraneus Kriechbaumer, 1879 sensu lato

van Achterberg, Cornelis, Smit, John T. & Ljubomirov, Toshko, 2023, Review of the European Eumenes Latreille (Hymenoptera, Vespidae) using morphology and DNA barcodes, with an illustrated key to species, ZooKeys 1143, pp. 93-163 : 93

Eumenes mediterraneus Kriechbaumer, 1879 sensu lato

Figs 94-102 , 103-111

Eumenis (sic!) Eumenes mediterraneus Kriechbaumer, 1879: 85.

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus mediterraneus ; van der Vecht and Fischer 1972: 129 (literature before 1972); Castro 1992: 25, 1997: 4; Dal Pos et al. 2022: 15.

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus ; Frommer 2012: 176-182; Fateryga 2017: 182, 2018: 206-207.

Eumenes mediterraneus ; Tobias and Kurzenko 1978: 160; Giordani Soika and Borsato 1995: 7; Arens 2012: 488; Neumeyer 2014: 367; 2019: 271; Baldock et al. 2020: 43; Cassar et al. 2022: 207.

Eumenes mediterraneus mediterraneus ; Borsato and Turrisi 2004: 144; Borsato 2006: 142-143; Castro and Sanza 2009: 266; Gusenleitner 2013: 28.

Eumenes affinissima race quettaensis Cameron, 1907: 132-133; Fateryga 2017: 182 (as synonym of E. mediterraneus ).

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus quettaensis ; van der Vecht and Fischer 1972: 129 (literature before 1972); Dal Pos et al. 2022: 15.

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus quettaensis ; Gusenleitner 2013: 28.

Labus superbus Meade-Waldo, 1910: 36; Fateryga 2017: 182 (as synonym of E. mediterraneus ).

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus superbus ; van der Vecht and Fischer 1972: 130 (literature before 1972).

Eumenes mediterraneus bengasinus Blüthgen, 1938: 487; Gusenleitner 2013: 27; Fateryga 2017: 182 (as synonym of E. mediterraneus ).

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus bengasinus ; van der Vecht and Fischer 1972: 129; Dal Pos et al. 2022: 15.

Eumenes mediterraneus cypricus Blüthgen, 1938: 488; Gusenleitner 2013: 27; Fateryga 2017: 182 (as synonym of E. mediterraneus ).

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus cypricus ; van der Vecht and Fischer 1972: 129; Dal Pos et al. 2022: 15.

Eumenes (Eumenes) houskai Giordani Soika, 1952a: 17; van der Vecht and Fischer 1972: 128; Fateryga 2017: 182 (as synonym of E. mediterraneus ).

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus anatolicus Giordani Soika, 1952b: 376; van der Vecht and Fischer 1972: 129; Fateryga 2017: 182 (as synonym of E. mediterraneus ).

Eumenes mediterraneus manchurianus Giordani Soika, 1971: 70; Gusenleitner 1999: 572; Fateryga 2017: 182 (as synonym of E. mediterraneus ).

Eumenes (Eumenes) mediterraneus manchurianus ; Dal Pos et al. 2022: 15.

Eumenes mediterraneus var. opacus Gusenleitner, 1972: 92; Fateryga 2017: 182 (as synonym of E. mediterraneus ).

Eumenes mediterraneus filitosa Gereys, 2011: 224-225, 2016: 132; Frommer 2012: 179.

Notes.

This species is in need of a critical revision; the few molecular data indicate that several cryptic species may be included under E. mediterraneus (Fig. 3 ). The lectotype male of E. mediterraneus originates from Croatia (Dalmatia) and was examined digitally by photographs kindly supplied by Stephan and Olga Schmidt (ZSM). It has the apical hook of the antenna less curved than pictured in Fig. 111 and its basal half densely setose. The sampled specimens from Crete and Corsica are different (Fig. 3 ) and a large-scale revision with sufficient fresh material from all over Europe is needed to sort out the relationships within the E. mediterraneus complex. For the populations of Corsica and Sardinia the name of E. m. filitosa Gereys is available; supposed to differ in most cases by the entirely black fifth tergite or largely so because of one or more small yellow patch(es) (in E. mediterraneus usually with complete yellow apical band, but absent in figured typical E. mediterraneus (Fig. 94 )). Possibly the strongly convex second metasomal tergite and deeper subposterior depression may be of importance for its separation. For the population of Cyprus ssp. Eumenes mediterraneus cypricus Blüthgen is available and differs by having the punctures of vertex, mesoscutum and second metasomal tergite at least twice larger than in typical E. mediterraneus ( Gusenleitner 1972).

Distribution.

Mediterranean, Balkan Peninsula, rarely in Central Europe (e.g., Switzerland only in Ticino and Valais and late in season (July-October; Neumeyer 2019) and very rarely collected in Germany ( Frommer 2012; Reder 2022). In Greece starting in April and present in lowland and submontane habitats ( Arens 2012). Reported from Asia up to Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Saudi-Arabia, China, Korea, and India, but this probably will change after a full revision (including molecular research) considering the uncertainty about the number of taxa under E. mediterraneus in Europe.

Figures

Figure 3. Neighbour-Joining tree for barcoded European Eumenes species. Both E. coarctatus specimens (sampled 5 y ago for another project and not available for examination) among E. coronatus are obviously misidentified and, therefore, in quotation marks. The numbers are RMNH unique identifiers except the Finnish numbers of both dark specimens of E. c. coarctatus from Finland.

Figures 94 - 102. Eumenes mediterraneus Kriechbaumer, Bulgaria, female 94 metasoma lateral 95 first metasomal tergite dorsal 96 first tergite ventral 97 mesosoma dorsal 98 antenna anterior 99 hind tarsus and tarsal claws 100 head anterior 101 head and propleuron lateral 102 propodeum dorsal.

Figures 103 - 111. Eumenes mediterraneus Kriechbaumer, Bulgaria, male 103 metasoma lateral 104 first metasomal tergite dorsal 105 first tergite ventral 106 head and mesosoma dorsal 107 propodeum dorsal 108 head anterior 109 head and mesosoma lateral 110 antenna anterior 111 apical hook of antenna lateral.